All Things Microsoft > Microsoft as a Company
Lindows and M$ are at it Again
Laukev7:
quote:Originally posted by flap:
Because it's proprietary.
--- End quote ---
Sun is proprietary and they're not hated to that extent just because of that. Besides, anyone can get the source for all GPL'ed Lindows binaries they received, in compliance to the licence.
flap:
I think it's the fact that they're using a large body of free software to produce a system that ultimately isn't free. Like Suse.
Laukev7:
SuSE isn't hated nearly as much as Lindows. To me it looks more like a free beer issue more than a free speech issue, and I find the hatred towards Lindows unfair. A lot of the scorn of the community is directed towards the CEO as well.
SAJChurchey:
The only reason that Lindows is looked down upon is their business practices are using open source and at the same time taking advantage of the consumers. For instance, the click-and-run library is a huge rip off, and it is the main way they make money...off selling open-source software for huge mark ups when a well educated consumer could download them for free elsewhere.
Second of all, Lindows never knew the meaning of open source. The original plan for Lindows was going to be this huge Windows-Linux compatability project: allowing Windows programs to run smoothly in Linux using WINE. Finally, when Lindows got up and running and was working on their version of the WINE project, the GNU informed them that they wanted the changes they had made. Ooops, forgot to read the GPL, and since they could not own it, they dropped their WINE project altogether.
So all in all, Michael Robertson is an opportunist who saw the potential of open source, even though he didn't know what it meant, and jumped into the market making promises just so he could butt heads with Bill Gates, and then abandoning the one thing that the Lindows distro had going for it. This is why Lindows is looked down upon.
quote:
A lot of the scorn of the community is directed towards the CEO as well
--- End quote ---
Lindows is his brainchild, and Lindows business practices come from him. I don't actually scorn him; I'm quite entertained by him actually.
quote:
I think it's the fact that they're using a large body of free software to produce a system that ultimately isn't free. Like Suse
--- End quote ---
I agree that taking ISOs off the web was a bad move on SuSE's part; however, you can still install it via FTP for free, and they do have a kick ass distro. SuSE knows the open source game.
flap:
quote:SuSE isn't hated nearly as much as Lindows.
--- End quote ---
As far as I'm aware SuSe isn't hated at all, unfortunately.
quote:I agree that taking ISOs off the web was a bad move on SuSE's part; however, you can still install it via FTP for free, and they do have a kick ass distro
--- End quote ---
I'm not talking about that - I have no objection to a distributor not putting their isos (or any of their distribution) online, as long as the software they distribute is Free. Yast is non-free (and is a fundamental part of what makes SuSe SuSe) so the distro is non-free.
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